Lincoln's salary

George Washington and Abraham Lincoln drew the same salary - $25,000.

Washington became president in 1789. By the time Lincoln began drawing his pay in 1861, he would have needed to be paid $24,100 in order to maintain parity with Washington according to the Consumer Price Index. Lincoln's $25k/year was worth more because the dollar had increased in value.

For the incumbent to have drawn the equivalent of Lincoln's pay in 2005, he would need to have gotten $309,210 per year. Fortunately for him in 1999 his income was raised to $400,000.

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